Watertown republican. [volume] (Watertown, Wis.) 1860-1906, 1887-05-18
CALLING IN MEXICO.
Politeness and Meaningless Complime nts
That Become Very Tiresome.

gentle MeXicans is sometimes but
short remove from the ridiculous, and
though their manners are kindness
personifed it frequently strikes us that
Spanish compliments are as tiresome
as absurd. For example, in making a
social visit: When ladies appear at the
door of the sdld de rectbe PERCEPTION
m)-having been admitted thus far
by the porter who sits at the gate of
the casa-the hostess runs to receive
them as fast as her high heels will
allow. Mexican ladies have an air of
great dignity and perfect repose of
features when they sit and are seen to
best advantage in their carriages or the
alter boxes or on their sofas at home.
On foot, however, they simply wobble,
and when in haste their ungraceful-
ness of gait is of course intensified
This is no doubt largely due to the
fact that they wear neels absurdly
high, placed almost in the center of
the foot, and always insist in wearing
shoe at least an inch too short for the
foot.
She embraces each of her visitors in
turn, after curious fashion that took
us long to learn-not by an American
kiss, or Frenchwoman's hearty hug;
but each of the embraces Gf one may
be allowed to cCin word for the occa-
sion puts her right hand upon the
others shoulder, the left hand near the
others heart, and leaning forward on
her toes just lays her cheek for an in
slant alongside the others neck. 1t
looks cordial, to say the least of it, but
beginners are sure to make bad work
at first, bobbing their heads to the
wrong side and humping one another's
noses.
After this ceremony has been strictly
attended to all around-for neglectinz
to embrace one of the callers would be
equivalent to giving her the worst
kind of 'cut direct''-the mistress of
the manse leads the way across the
saI0 to the square of carpet at the
farther end, which is always bounded
on three sides by the sofa against the
wall and two rows of chairs planted
vis-a-vis. But before sitting down an
other ceremony must be gone through
with de rigueur. Says the hostess:
"Pray be seated, ladies'"
"Seat yourself, senora," is the re-
spouse.
mo, no; passa "" she replies; and
SO they keep it up indefinitely until it
begins to look as though they never
: elf II in oil
is broken by the eldest or most conse-
quential member of the party, who,
with an air of dignifed humility, re-
marks: "Vdya! Well, to oblige you,
without further ceremony; l dislike
compliments.
The lady who is considered of most
consequence, either by reason of age
OF social position, is invariably seated
on the right-hand corner of the sofa
| apointin etiquette of great Importance
and the mistress of the casa on the
farthest chair. Then the following
slightest variation:
How is your health, senorita? Are
you wellP'
"At your service, senorita; and your
self?''
"Stn movedad (without novelty); at
your service"
81 am rejoiced. And you, how are
you, senoritaP"
cat your disposal; and YOURSELF"
"M1 grdcjas Ca thousand thanks); at
your service"
"And the senior, your husband, how
is hep
"M1 gracias; at your disposal; with
out novelty, ETC., through the gamut
of all their relatives, from the grand
mothers down to the babies. This
takes some time, and if early in the
morning there is the additional ques-
ton, which must be put to every one
whom you meet before midday:
"Conao passe z. la aaoche?" (How did
you pass the nightly to be invariably
answered, whether well OF i'll, by the
oft repeated: ga thousand thanks; at
your service, and yourself?''
All these empty compliments are
merely tokens of good will, without
serious meaning in them, and, in fact,
there is little real etiquette here, but
the most perfect laassez alLer in the
world. AS everywhere else, even in
Mexico, where the temperature scarce
ly varies ten degrees in course of a
year, the weather affords a legitimate
topic for conversation. The slightest
change in the degree of heat or cold
opens the battery, and the occasional
surprise of dull skies or signs of rain is
perfect bonanza in that direction.
The visit over, the ladies re-embrace
all around, the lady of the house fol-
lows her guests to the outer door, and
again thousand compliments are Civ
EN- and returned. Each refuses to
'.passe ~ ahead of the others, and
after several minutes the friendly strife
is at last ended, as before, by the old
est lady, who says: "VaUa, to oblige